


It's My Party, I Can Yell If I Want To

by HappyJuicyfruit



Series: If These Ears Could Talk [6]
Category: Teen Wolf (TV)
Genre: Birthday Party, Bullying, Derek is a Failwolf, Emotional Hurt/Comfort, Established Relationship, M/M, Mistakes, Stiles is Hard of Hearing
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-07-12
Updated: 2018-07-12
Packaged: 2019-06-09 05:23:04
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 5,496
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/15260322
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/HappyJuicyfruit/pseuds/HappyJuicyfruit
Summary: Derek has made a lot of mistakes in his life, and he has a lot of regrets.Currently, his biggest regret is forgetting his boyfriends birthday.





	It's My Party, I Can Yell If I Want To

**Author's Note:**

> This fic is part of a series! At this point you should probably read the rest to understand what's going on. If you don't want to though here's a very short recap: Stiles is hard of hearing, Stiles and Derek are dating, Stiles (and others in the pack) have gone off to university and are now heading home for the summer. 
> 
> I hope you enjoy! :) 
> 
>  
> 
>  
> 
> warnings: Derek accidentally buys Stiles a very insensitive gift (connected to him being hard of hearing)  
> Stiles is excluded from a party at his school because he is hard of hearing.

The envelope was very thin. Was that a good sign? Did acceptance letters come in thin envelopes? Derek wished Stiles was here, he would know. Hell, he would have opened the letter an hour ago when Derek had first spotted it. 

 

Derek wouldn’t have had to spend the past hour in agony, not knowing if he’d gotten in to the police academy or not. 

 

He reached a hand out to grab the letter off the coffee table, but withdrew it before he even touched the paper. 

 

Fuck. What if he hadn’t gotten in? What would Stiles say? What would the pack think? What would the  _ Sheriff _ think? He had been the one to write Derek’s recommendation letter, and at some point Derek had developed a need to never disappoint the man. And not getting in that.. that would be disappointing.

 

But what if he got in? 

 

He grabbed the envelope, heart pounding in his chest. He flipped it over and over again in his hands, still not able to open it. 

 

If Stiles were here, he would have opened it by now. Sometimes Derek wished he could call him...

 

Derek huffed, feeling exasperated at himself. He was an Alpha, for God’s sake. He’d fought monsters far scarier than a tiny envelope. He ripped the envelope open before he second guessed himself again. Inside were two creamy pieces of folded paper. He unfolded them with shaky hands. 

 

_ Derek Hale,  _

 

_ We are happy to inform you that you have been accepted into-  _

 

That’s all he read before he slumped against the couch in relief. 

 

He’d gotten in. 

 

He’d been  _ accepted _ . 

 

Into the police academy! 

 

Derek bolted upright again, reading the whole letter this time. It was true, he was starting next September. He was going to be a police officer! 

 

His phone buzzed on the table in front of him and Derek fumbled for it, smile growing even brighter when he say Stiles name flash across the screen. 

 

Stiles was messaging him about a party or something in two weeks - probably because everyone would be back from school by then. Derek fumbled out a quick _sounds_ _great_ before he jumped into his good news.

 

To Stiles <3: 

_ Just opened the mail. I got into the academy!  _

 

Derek’s heart warmed when he saw the little dots on the screen immediately start bouncing. Of course Stiles would reply right away. 

 

From Stiles <3: 

_ Yesss!!! I knew you would babe!  _

 

From Stiles <3: 

_ So proud of you!  _

 

Derek flushed, smiling sheepishly down at his phone. Before Stiles, no one had told Derek they were proud of him for a long time. It was nice.

 

To Stiles <3: 

_ Thank you. _

 

From Stiles <3: 

_ What did the rest of the gang say? _

 

To Stiles <3:

_ I’ve only told you.  _

 

From Stiles <3:

_ Awww _

 

Derek rolled his eyes, but his smile stayed in place. 

 

To Stiles <3: 

_ Don’t let it go to your head, you’re just at the top of my contact list. Texting everyone else now.  _

 

Derek starting flipping through his contacts, texting off messages to his packmates to tell them the news. Another text from Stiles popped up as he was messaging Allison. 

 

From Stiles <3: 

_ Yeah right boo. Ya know I’m your #1.  _

 

From Stiles <3: 

_ Hey, it’s cool that I’m having the party at your place right? It’s not too early in our relationship for me to be inviting people over to your place?  _

 

Derek frowned, confused. Stiles planned pack parties at Derek’s house all the time, why would it be any different now? 

 

To Stiles <3: 

_ Yeah it’s fine. _

 

From Stiles <3: 

_ :) _

 

Derek got distracted by the wave of text messages that took over his phone after that. He was a bit appalled by the number of emojis most of his pack used instead of words. 

 

Texting was confusing. He missed the simpler days when you just called a person. 

 

He smiled at all the messages telling him how happy his pack was for him. He didn’t think much more about the party Stiles was planning. 

 

Something he deeply regretted later. 

 

—

 

Derek was on cloud nine for the rest of that week. He was pursuing a career that was both useful to society, and something that could help his pack. All of the pack mates that had traveled far away were going to be home in just a few days. 

 

Yep, he was smiling happily by the time he sat down for his weekly Skype date with Stiles on Sunday night. The only thing that could make this day better would be hearing that Stiles last exams had been cancelled and that he would be home sooner than expected. As it was, Stiles wouldn’t be home until next Saturday, the day of the party. 

 

Derek wished he could see him sooner - but Stiles had been sticking to a strict schedule (which has actually been a huge help, Stiles was doing a lot better now than compared to his midterms) and Derek didn’t squeeze into it. 

 

His computer started to ring and Derek hit accept, smiling at his boyfriend who looked sleepy but happy to see him. 

 

“Hey Der, how's it going?” Stiles said, leaning on his hand and smiling happily at him. 

 

“I’m good. I’ve had a really great week, actually,” Derek said, watching as Stiles eyes moved between Derek’s face and the words that were now popping up on the screen. Stiles had recently installed Skype Translator, which wrote out whatever Derek was saying in real time so Stiles didn’t get lost during their conversations. It had been a fantastic and very helpful tool, especially in these long periods when they couldn’t see each other very often and Derek just wanted to hear Stiles voice. 

 

“I know! Look at you, Mr Academy,” Stiles grinned at him, “I’m so proud of you babe.” 

 

Derek blushed, which just made Stiles grin grow wider. He changed the subject before Stiles could comment on it. “Thanks. How are you doing? Exams going well?” 

 

“Yep! Only two to go! Sucks I can’t come home earlier, but I’m going to be sooo happy when these are over.” Stiles leaned more heavily on his hand, looking tired. He wasn’t texting Derek random numbers yet though, so Derek wasn’t worried. 

 

“I’m proud of you too, you know, for getting through your first year.” Derek said, eyes tracing Stiles sleepy face. 

 

“I know.” Stiles said simply, smiling at him softly. “Hey, so, about the party on Saturday. Don’t worry about it too much, just get some snacks and stuff. Make sure the place is clean, though it always is so I guess I don’t even have to say that,” Stiles laughed, leaning back in his chair. “Don’t worry about decorating or anything, Lydia said she’s going to take care of that. And my dad’s bringing pizzas.” 

 

“Decoration?” Derek asked, what were they decorating for? And was Stiles dad officially pack now?... Derek would have to think about that one. He supposed a party was good for a trial run. 

 

“Yeah, just a banner and some balloons or something. I don’t know, Lydia never tells me her plans.” Stiles shrugged, “thanks again for letting me do this at your place. I would do it at my dad's, but he’s having a lot of renovations done right now.” 

 

Right. The Sheriff was redoing all of his floors. But why was Stiles thanking him? They always had pack parties at Derek’s place. 

 

“It’s fine, Stiles. We have all the important events at my place anyway.” 

 

“Aw, you think this is an important event?” Stiles leaned forward again, eyes twinkling. 

 

The entire pack being together again after almost a year? “Of course it’s important.” 

 

Stiles smiled dopely at him, “You’re such a sap.” 

 

An alarm started beeping on Stiles end, and Derek could see the lights on Stiles phone flashing off screen. Damn - that meant their time was up. 

 

Stiles frowned unhappily, “I have to get back to studying.” 

 

“It’s okay, I understand.” 

 

“You’re the best,” Stiles blew a kiss at the camera, “text me when you’re heading to bed?” 

 

“Will do.” 

 

“Bye boo!” 

 

“Bye Stiles.” 

 

The call disconnected, and Stiles was gone. 

Derek could not wait for this week to end. 

 

—

 

Derek bought all the supplies for the party Friday night. Since Stiles said the Sheriff was bringing everyone pizza, he mostly just bought snacks. The usual chips and dip for the guys, veggies for Lydia and Allison, frozen curly fries for Stiles. He grabbed a few cookies as well, since Erica secretly had a giant sweet tooth. 

 

Back at the loft he organized all the food, placing the bags of chips in bowls on the table so all he had to do was dump them in before guests arrived. He glanced around, but everything looked clean enough. 

 

He was excited for tomorrow - to have all the pack together in one room again. The wolf in him practically howled with joy at the idea. 

 

\-- 

 

Derek knew Stiles had told everyone to come at 5:30, so he started setting up the snacks around four. Knowing his pack, there would be a lot of early arrivals. 

 

Sure enough, at quarter to 5 the first of the pack began to arrive. Watching Erica, Isaac and Boyd walk in, however, did not bring the happiness he thought it would. It mostly brought confusion. All three of his betas were carrying packages that they carefully set on the coffee table. Two wrapped in newspaper, Erica’s wrapped in bright red wrapping paper. 

 

“Are those… presents?” Derek asked. Isaac nodded, already munching on the Dorito chips Derek had put out. 

 

“Yeah, is it okay if we have them here? Did you have a specific spot for them?” Erica asked, looking around. 

 

“No.. that’s fine.” Derek said, still feeling confused. His answer didn’t seem strange to the other three though, as they simply sat down on his couch and started chatting. 

 

Why did they have presents though? 

 

Derek didn’t have long to contemplate, unfortunately, as a minute later Jackson came waltzing in carrying a large box, wrapped in paper covered in smiley faces. 

 

“What.” Derek said, staring in bewilderment as Jackson set the box down beside the coffee table. 

 

“I know, it’s ridiculous. Lydia insisted on doing a joined present though, and she picked it. I just had to carry it in here,” Jackson shrugged, flopping down on the couch beside Isaac. 

 

“What.” Derek said again, all four betas looked up at him in confusion. 

 

“Lydia and I did a joined present.” Jackson repeated, slower. Like that would help. 

 

“I joined present for-?” 

 

“Oh God, Derek,” Lydia cut off his question as she entered the room, arms laden with birthday decorations, “I know Stiles told you I would do the decorating, but really? Please tell me you at least remembered to get a cake.” 

 

A cake? Derek’s eyes widened as everything clicked together. A cake, presents, birthday decorations. His heart started to pound as he saw the large and happy 19 floating around with Lydia’s other birthday balloons. 

 

Today was Stiles 19th birthday. Derek had completely forgotten. 

 

“Oh,  _ fuck _ .” 

 

“Derek?” Isaac and Erica both asked in concern. Lydia just raised an unimpressed brow at him. 

 

“I - I have to go-” 

 

“You forgot to get a cake, didn’t you?” Lydia said, placing her bags on the floor while still somehow keeping her narrowed eyes on Derek. Crap, Lydia would be onto him in a second. 

 

He needed to get out of here. 

 

“I’m just going to- I’ll be back!” Derek said, already rushing toward the door. 

 

“Go to Dairy Queen! He likes ice cream cakes!” Lydia shouted after him. 

 

Dairy Queen, okay. He could do that. 

 

Right after he found a present. 

 

\-- 

 

He ran into the mall, eyes moving between the stores in search of one that Stiles might like. 

 

Women’s clothes, women’s clothes, women’s clothes, comic book store- Derek paused, but then kept on walking when he realized it was just a toy store with the Avengers showcased at the front. 

He would come back to that if he was desperate. 

 

Shoe store, luggage store, children’s clothing store, candy store - he paused again, but shook that thought off quickly. He couldn’t get Stiles candy for his birthday. 

 

Women’s clothes, women’s clothes, a tech store - Derek paused again. Stiles liked technology things… Derek didn’t know what he liked, though, or what Stiles even needed right now. 

His phone buzzed in his pocket as Derek stared at the store entrance. 

 

Lydia: 

_ Stiles just arrived. You better be back soon. _

 

Fuck. 

 

He walked into the store, by-passing all of the products to talk directly to the guy at the counter. He didn’t have time to browse. 

 

“I need something for a 19 year old’s birthday party.”

 

The guy, a twenty something man who looked like he was trying to grow a beard and failing, nodded his head slightly. “Uh, okaayyy… like, what does this 19 year old like?” 

 

Derek ran a hand over his face, he didn’t have time for this. “I don’t know, what any 19 year old boys like. Video games, going on the internet, whatever the hell he’s always doing on his phone.” 

 

The guy nodded again, “okay, what kind of phone does he have?” 

 

“Um,” Derek frowned, “an iPhone.” 

 

“A new one?” 

 

“No, an older one.” 

 

“Alright, well,” the man turned around, looking over the items on the wall before grabbing something and turning back around, “okay, so, you can either get him a gift card for iTunes, which would let him buy something for himself. Or you could get him these. They’re great, wireless, connect with bluetooth. They should work with his current phone and whatever he gets next.” 

 

The guy held up a case of.. Something, Derek barely looked at it, he just nodded. “Great, I’ll take that. I can’t give him a gift card.” 

 

“Kay sweet, I’ll just ring that up for you-” 

 

“Could you wrap it?” 

 

The guy blinked, “wrap it?” 

 

“Yeah, like a - like a present?” Derek asked anxiously. He was running out of time. 

 

“Um.. we don’t really wrap things outside of Christmas..” Derek leaned against the counter, mostly in panic, but the guy took a step back and held his hands up, “I have some fliers I could wrap it in, I guess?” 

 

“Perfect, do that,” Derek said, already grabbing his wallet, “I’ll pay with credit.” 

 

\-- 

 

With the present bought and wrapped, Derek then sped across town to Dairy Queen. There were only two birthday cakes left in the display case. Derek chose the one with the race car. 

 

He dropped this into the passenger seat beside the gift, and stared down at the seat. He had the cake, he had a present, what was he missing..? 

 

A card. Fuck. 

 

Oh well, no time for that. Derek would just have to tell him who it was from. 

 

He revved the Camaro to life, screeching out of the parking lot. If he drove fast, he would only be half an hour late to the party. Which was fine, he doubted everyone arrived on time anyway. It was fine. Everything was fine. 

 

Stiles never had to know he had forgotten his birthday. 

 

\-- 

 

Everyone was there when Derek arrived. He froze in the doorway when everyone turned to watch him, but plastered on a smile when he saw Stiles. 

 

“Hey! Happy birthday!” He said, probably a tad too cheerfully. Stiles gave him a look of amusement as he walked over to greet him. 

 

Everyone else went back to chatting amongst themselves - thank God. 

 

“Hey, you, forgot to pick up the cake?” Stiles asked, pecking Derek on the cheek. 

 

“Uh, yeah, sorry I wasn’t here when you got here..” Derek said, avoiding Stiles gaze and hurrying the cake over to the freezer. He was lucky he didn’t have much in there, it was the only reason the cake fit. 

 

“No problemo! Lydia explained that you forgot to pick up the cake, but that you remembered I loved ice cream cake. Which is impressive, considering I don’t even remember telling you I like ice cream cake.” Stiles said, leaning against the counter beside the fridge. 

 

Derek coughed awkwardly, “uh, you didn’t. You talked to Scott about it, one time, and I just happened to be there.” 

 

Stiles frowned, “when?” 

 

Derek shrugged, “I don’t know, a few months ago. Anyway, how are you? How were your last exams?” 

 

Stiles perked up at the change of topic, “they were great! Pretty sure I aced everything.” 

 

“I’m sure you did,” Derek said, leaning forward to kiss him. Stiles kissed him back enthusiastically, and Derek momentarily forgot he’d almost ruined his boyfriends birthday. That is, he did forget, until Stiles wrapped his hands around his waist and then giggled. 

 

“What’s in your pocket?” Stiles asked, poking Derek’s side. “It feels like a giant ball of newspaper.” 

 

Right, Stiles present was still stuffed in his jacket. He wasn’t home free yet. 

 

“Nothing,” Derek said, taking a step back. “Hey, did you eat those curly fries I made for you?” 

 

“Obviously. I didn’t even share.” Stiles smirked, trying to step up against Derek again. 

 

“Okay, well, want me to make more? I got two bags of them. Why don’t I make more, and you go enjoy your party.” Derek smiled, nudging Stiles away from him and closer to the people milling around in his living room. 

 

Stiles laughed, but Derek just kept staring at him. “Oh, you’re serious. Okay, come sit with me when they’re in the oven?” 

 

“Of course,” Derek said, smiling at his boyfriend until his back was turned. Only when he was sure Stiles was not going to turn around again did Derek let himself to let out his breath, slumping slightly against the counter. 

 

“You forgot, didn’t you?” 

 

Derek jumped, then twisted around to glare at Lydia. This woman was terrifying, how had a few months apart allowed him to forget that? 

 

“No, I-” 

 

“Derek,” Lydia said, eyebrows judgemental. 

 

Jesus, and Stiles thought Derek’s eyebrows were expressive. He glanced over at Stiles again, making sure he was talking to his dad before he turned back to Lydia. 

 

“Please don’t tell him.” 

 

Lydia rolled her eyes, “why would I tell him? I would never intentionally hurt Stiles. Besides, you’ve fixed it, right? You got the cake?” 

 

“I got the cake,” Derek nodded. 

 

“You got him a present?” 

 

“Yes.” 

 

“What did you get him?” 

 

“Uh, I’m not sure,” Derek pulled out the package, placing it gently on the counter, “the sales person said a 19 year old would enjoy it though.” 

 

Lydia sighed, clearly disappointed in him. “Where’s the card?” 

 

“Uh-” 

 

“I see. Well, this will have to do. We can only hope Stiles won’t notice.” Lydia said primply, picking up the present, “you get those cries in the oven, I’ll put this on the table. Then we can both pretend this never happened.” 

 

Derek nodded, feeling himself relax for the first time since Lydia had walked through his door that afternoon. “Thank you, Lydia.” 

 

Lydia gave him a small smile with a slight nod before she turned around and walked to the living room, Derek’s present held casually behind her back. Derek watched as she leaned over the table, depositing the present as she grabbed a handful of chips. 

 

No one noticed when she pulled away, chips in hand and present in place. 

 

Derek felt relieved. Hopefully no one would notice his mistake, and Stiles would never have to know Derek had had no idea that this was his birthday. Derek shook his head at his own stupidity before turning around to get the curly fries. 

 

\--

 

The party went smoothly after that. The Sheriff took Scott and Isaac with him to get the pizza’s, which they ate while playing a game of charades. There was a lot of laughing, and a lot of horrible guesses, but everyone seemed to be enjoying themselves. Derek curled an arm around Stiles shoulders, smiling whenever Stiles laughed. 

 

Melissa helped Derek serve the cake, though Derek had to thank Lydia again when she pulled out candles - he really had forgotten everything. Stiles had loved the race car design, thankfully. It made it look like Derek had actually chosen it on purpose. 

 

Everything was going great - until presents. 

 

Stiles had tried to put off the presents, something that Derek had fully supported, but Melissa and the Sheriff had convinced him to open them all now. So now here they all sat, Stiles in the center of the couch and the rest of the pack circled around him, watching Stiles open presents. 

 

They were mostly small things. A scarf from Isaac, a few comic books from Erica. The large box from Lydia and Jackson had turned out to be a giant plush Batman - something that Stiles had full on squealed over (though he would never admit it). Then suddenly Stiles was holding Derek’s lamely wrapped present, searching for a card or a tag and asking who it was from. 

 

Derek swallowed nervously, “that’s from me.” 

 

Stiles smiled at him brightly, tearing apart the paper - and then freezing. Half of the room stiffened when all of the wolves in the room caught the scents of hurt and anger wafting off of Stiles. Derek shifted nervously. 

 

Stiles didn’t even look up though. He just stared at the package in his hands. 

 

“Uh.. the guy said they were wireless? Or something?” Derek tried, shifting his position beside Stiles to get a better look at what he’d bought his boyfriend. He felt his stomach drop when he read the label. The packaging was sleek and black, with bright blue writing spelling out - 

 

“Headphones,” Stiles finally spoke, his voice stone cold. “You bought me wireless headphones.” 

 

“Oh, no,” Lydia groaned somewhere to his left. Derek silently agreed with her. 

 

“Are you an insensitive asshole, or are you just an idiot?” Stiles said, voice still unnaturally cold. 

 

Derek gaped at him wordlessly. 

 

“Seriously, Derek, what the fuck?” Stiles lifted the box again, reading off it it, “great for listening to music? A crisp sound? Wireless audio control? _Why_ _would you buy me this?!_ ” Stiles stood up at the end, shaking the box at Derek. 

 

“I- I didn’t- Stiles wait,” Derek stood up as well when Stiles started to walk away from him. Stiles turned back, and Derek cleared his throat awkwardly, meeting Stiles angry glare. “I forgot your birthday. I just bought the first thing the sales guy handed me.” 

 

“You forgot it was my birthday, right,” Stiles sneered in disbelief, “Derek, I am having the party at your house! As excuses go, that’s a pretty lame-” 

 

“I didn’t know it was your birthday! You didn’t tell me it was your birthday! I thought we were just having a party!” 

 

Stiles took a step back, eyes narrowing dangerously, “are you seriously trying to blame  _ me _ right now?” 

 

Derek winced, “no. I-” 

 

“I texted you, dumbass. Specifically about having my birthday party at your house!” 

 

Derek’s chest tightened painfully, he didn’t know how to fix this. “I can - I can buy you something else! Anything you want! Doesn’t matter how much it costs!”

 

There were a number of groans around him, but Derek ignored them. He focused on Stiles as the man ran a hand through his hair, huffing out a breath. 

 

“That is so not the point, Derek.” 

 

“Then..No, I can return this.” Derek growled desperately, “I’ll get you something else-” 

 

“That’s not the point!” Stiles said, arms flailing. 

 

“Then what’s the point!” Derek snapped back, keeping his own arms tightly at his sides. 

 

“You didn’t even think about me, Derek, you just bought the first thing you saw! Do you even realize you could have gotten me a fucking  _ rock _ , and I would have been happy with it if you told me you picked it up because it reminded you of me or something?” Stiles snapped, “but no! You got me an insensitive gift that I can’t even use! You didn’t even know it was my birthday! I try to know  _ everything _ about you, I try to make sure you feel  _ loved _ , and you can’t even remember one single day! That I even  _ reminded _ you about!”

 

Derek didn’t know what to say to that - he didn’t think he could say anything to that. Stiles stared him down a moment longer, before he turned and stormed out of the loft. 

 

Derek sank down back onto the couch, covering his eyes with his hands. 

 

“Well, you really screwed that up,” Jackson said, already munching on the chips again. Derek heard Lydia slap him. 

 

Derek felt the couch dip beside him before a hand landed on his shoulder, Derek looked up at the Sheriff in surprise. “The kid’s got a point though, son. You messed this up real good.” 

 

Derek sighed, looking back down at his hands, “I know.” 

 

“Do you want me to go talk to him?” Scott offered, causing Derek to turn in surprise again, “he usually calms down faster when there’s someone to rant to.” 

 

Well, that was a surprise. He hadn’t expected Stiles father and best friend to support Derek after a fight. He frowned, feeling suspicious of his beta. He knew that he and Scott had come a long way, but this? He never expected this kindness from Scott. 

 

“Why would you do that for me?” 

 

“You’re good for him, you make him happy,” Scott shrugged. “I don’t want you guys fighting over a mistake. Everyone makes mistakes.” 

 

Oh. 

 

“Also, Scott forgot my birthday last year,” Allison chimed in with a smirk, “he feels your pain.” 

 

Okay, that made more sense.

 

“Hey!” Scott frowned, “at least I didn’t buy you some insensitive present too.”

 

“Really Scott?” Allison said, “do you want to lose this fight again?”

 

“Anyway,” the Sheriff said, cutting the bickering couple off, “we also all figured out that you had no idea what today was,” the Sheriff said, grinning at Derek when he winced. “It’s okay, though, Stiles will come around, after a lot of apologies and begging from your side. He has a hard time holding a grudge on the people he cares about.” 

 

Derek sat up a bit, “so.. He won’t stay mad at me?” 

 

“Oh no, he’ll be furious at you. Possibly for years.” The Sheriff laughed. 

 

“Yeah, he’s probably going to yell at you a lot more… but, like, while he’s helping you do your homework still, you know?” Scott said. 

 

That actually explained a lot about Scott and Stiles friendship. 

 

“Are you going to go after him?” Lydia asked. 

 

Derek thought about it for a second, before shaking his head. “No, I’ll give him a chance to cool down. One of you can go talk to him if you want.. I’m going to go fix this mistake first.” Derek picked up the headphones. He resisted the urge to throw them across the room. “Sorry I ruined the party.” 

 

“Hey, what’s a birthday without some yelling?” Isaac said, head leaning back in Erica’s lap. 

 

Derek snorted. 

 

\-- 

 

Derek gave Stiles a whole day to cool down. He didn’t even climb through Stiles window to talk to him, he knocked on his door and waited for an answer. 

 

Stiles stood on the other side of that door for a long time before pulling it open. Derek listened as his heart beat sped up and then slowed down three times before Stiles finally opened the door. 

 

He looked pissed still, even before his eyes landed on the present in Derek’s hands. 

 

“Hi,” Derek said lamely. “Can I come in?” 

 

Stiles shrugged, but he left the door open behind him when he walked away. Derek followed him into the living room, making sure to sit on the opposite side of the couch. 

 

“Stiles, I am so sorry. I read through my text messages again and you did tell me it was your birthday. I was just so excited about the letter from the academy, I barely read over the text. I’m sorry, I’m an idiot.” 

 

Stiles shoulders relaxed slightly, but he still didn’t say anything. It was unnerving. 

 

“I, um, returned those headphones and got you some different presents. Things that I saw that reminded me of you when I was at the mall, but that I… I didn’t get because they seemed stupid.” 

 

Stiles raised his brows at him, but grabbed the bag when Derek handed it to him. Derek held his breath as Stiles started unwrapping all the little presents. 

 

A tiny Captain America action figure from the toy store, a bag of gummy bears and a bag of sour patch kids from the candy store, and a $50 iTunes gift card so Stiles could buy whatever he wanted. He let out sigh of relief when Stiles smiled at the action figure. 

 

“Why didn’t you get me any of these before?” Stiles asked, looking up from the action figure. 

 

“I.. I didn’t think these would be good enough. I wanted to get you something real, something that cost more than $10. I didn’t even think about what it was though, just that some guy at the store said a 19 year old boy would like it.” 

 

Stiles breathed out a laugh. Derek took a risk and inched a bit closer. 

 

“I don’t care about money, Derek.” 

 

“I know, I’m sorry,” Derek said, moving even closer, “I screwed up. I should have bought you something I knew you would like, even if it was cheap. I should have noticed I was buying you earphones. I’m so  _ sorry _ , Stiles.” 

 

Stiles was letting Derek scoot his way down the couch, but he still wasn’t saying anything. He moved the arms of the Captain America figure, frowning down at the doll. 

 

“Stiles, I-” 

 

“I didn’t get invited to the year end party.” Stiles whispered. Derek paused, frowning. 

 

“What?” 

 

“... My dorm. They all had a party, at the end of the year. I wasn’t invited.” 

 

“What.” Derek growled, furios. 

 

“I thought I was making friends. I thought that at least my neighbors would have…” Stiles took a deep breath, pausing for a second to place the action figure down on the table. “I confronted one of them, Tara, and.. I asked if it was because I was away every weekend, if maybe I just hadn’t spent enough time with them but, no, that wasn’t it. Apparently people had a hard time ‘connecting’ with me. They didn’t know how to talk to me, so they didn’t bother inviting me.” 

 

Stiles looked down at his hands, he smelled sad. Derek clenched his fists in fury. 

 

“Hey,” Derek said, waiting for Stiles to look up at him again.“Tell me who they are. I’ll rip their throats out.” 

 

“With your teeth?” Stiles asked with a grin. “It doesn’t matter who they are, Derek. I just thought… well I thought I was doing great on my own. I thought that me being hard of hearing didn’t matter to anyone. I thought that at least I had my own group, my pack, and they accepted me for who I am, and I would have my own party…but then..” 

 

“But then I gave you the worst present ever,” Derek finished for him, wincing at his own mistake. “Stiles, I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to do that to you.” 

 

“It’s fine,” Stiles whispered. 

 

“It’s not fine. I made you feel bad about yourself, I never want to do that. Stiles, I love you. Every part of you, even your hearing.  _ Especially _ your hearing.” Stiles gave him a dubious look, so Derek pushed forward, finally getting close enough to grab Stiles hand. “I’m serious. When I talk to you, I have your full attention. I know you’re listening to me, and my entire focus is on you. I don’t feel that way, with anyone else. It doesn’t feel as important.” 

 

“But isn’t that annoying? To have to put so much effort in just to talk to me?” Stiles asked, his hand gripping Derek’s hard. 

 

“Not at all,” Derek shook his head, “I like it. It makes you who you are. You’re special, and unique, and I love you.” 

 

Stiles eyes were starting to get a bit misty, Derek raised a hand to rub a thumb across Stiles cheek. “We’ll deal with your school later. For now, you’re at home, with your pack, and we all love you. Every part of you.” 

 

Stiles breath hitched, and suddenly Derek had an armful of the man. Stiles buried his face in Derek’s neck, and Derek held him tightly. 

 

\-- 

 

“I really am sorry,” Derek said again, lying beside Stiles on his bed. Stiles laughed, leaning forward to kiss him again. 

 

“You are forgiven. Though I wouldn't be against another round of apology slash make up sex,” Stiles wiggled his eyebrows, “especially if you do that thing with your tongue again.” 

 

Derek smirked, pushing forward to pin Stiles to the bed and claiming his mouth. 

 

He was glad the Sheriff was working the night shift, he had a feeling no one would be sleeping in this house tonight. 

**Author's Note:**

> Thanks for reading! Leave a kudos or comment to let me know what you think!


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